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Phenology Blog #1:
1/9/2023 – Danehy Park, Cambridge MA
Google Maps aerial view (1st picture-whole park) (2nd picture-my area)
Based solely off these images it can be a little deceiving however my area is rather unique! The close up image shows a darker patch of what seems to be a forest however it is a marsh at the bottom of the hill (which is the green patch to the left of the trail in the center). I chose this place as it has both a nostalgic importance to me as well as an interesting group of trees and plants (at least for a park in Cambridge). The walk there is very close to where I reside and thus I have always walked through this area. I used to come here every time it snowed to sled down that hill (and often if there was no ice) into the marshy water. It also houses multiple playgrounds not far from my site which I grew up on as well as a little outdoor grilling area (right next to the hill) and many trails. Since I grew up playing sports (from ice hockey to soccer to track and field) I also would use the numerous fields to practice on with my teams. It also has a dog park right behind the soccer field all the way to the left of my site where I take my dog every morning. To me it has always been a mystery as to how or why there is a marsh in the middle of a city. The way I can describe my area before showing the images I took is this: to the left there is a hill with some pine trees on top and a little bench, to the (even harder turn) left again there lies the benches and grills, and to the right is the giant willow tree that watches over the marsh. The marsh has lots of Cattails and other tall grasses growing near the water. Behind that there lie a very limited amount of pine trees (probably because the very moist and wet conditions are not ideal for them) and then some huge oaks. There also happen to be a few Ash trees!
1/11/2023 Phenology Blog Site Post #2:
Today I sat and observed my site by taking a seat on the grassy hill and writing notes. To be honest not much seemed to have changed since my last post, besides the amount of people (which there was plenty more of today!). I also decided to take a rough sketch of the place while there (did not have coloured pencils) from an aerial/birds eye view.
My observations of today:
It was rather windy however that was about it in terms of nature noises coming from my site. I heard the occasional dog barking but for the most part (due to the playground nearby) I heard children laughing and screaming. The ground was frozen and dry (so dry it started to crack in places along the grass leading towards the border of the cattails and marshland). The wind was soothing however (despite it being about 28 degrees out when I was doing this) as it moved all the tall grasses and cattails from one direction to another. It looked like a very well animated Japanese film (like from Studio Ghibli!) But most interesting of all was that the willow still had some leaves which rustled in the wind creating a unique noise unlike other leaves blowing in the wind. At one point I saw what I thought was a robin (could have been any bird to be honest) go into the tall willow and sit there peacefully. It was than scared off by two squirrels gleefully jumping around the branches of said willow, however I couldn’t see where they went after that. Another thing I noticed was way the sun was positioned (it was late day/evening) as it lay behind the hill now and it shown a wonderful yellow haze over the light green grassy hill. This made we wonder if the few Ash trees planted along the trail along with the oaks were planted with purpose, such as being ideal for that location based off of the amount of shade they received. I also was wondering why there were pine trees (still not sure what type) were so close to such a moist/marshland area, as I was under the presumption that they grew better in other soil types. The water was completely frozen and upon stepping on it (as I was walking back home) I realised that much of the muddy wet soil underneath the ice was still unfrozen! I wonder if the layer of ice insulated that soil and prevented it from becoming frosty and crackly like the rest of the soils at my site.
Here I took a panorama in order to capture the entirety of my site!
Hello, today’s blog (1/14/23) is a rather unique one! WE GOT SNOW!!! While it did not stick very long I managed to grab some neat pictures of it!
Today (1/15/2023)I was unable to add any photographs or go to my location as I was on my way back to UVM however I thought I would write up a little bit of information on the park in general.
History Lesson of Danehy Park: (sources, the people who maintain the park, Wikipedia, various websites, my mother –> who grew up and saw the evolution of this park!)
Danehy Park has had a number of different uses over the years. Originally named after a former Cambridge mayor in the 20’s with the intention of being turned from a farm area and landfill into a public park. The 70 acre land got converted into various sport fields, playgrounds, dog-play areas, trails and picnic benches! To this day it remains difficult for some of the natural sides of the park to thrive due to the harsh conditions created by simply putting soil over a landfill.